Seven initiatives funded through President's Innovation Fund

Feb. 15, 2006

KALAMAZOO--The results of a campuswide search for ideas that
are "truly transformational" were unveiled by Western
Michigan University President Judith I. Bailey Feb. 15, when
she announced the selection of seven proposals to receive support
through her President's Innovation Fund.

Projects to receive funding range from the establishment of
a new center focused on career and human resource issues in Grand
Rapids to an engineering effort aimed at getting middle school
students who are eligible for the Kalamazoo Promise ready to
pursue technical careers. Those two initiatives and five others
were selected from among the 80 proposals submitted from literally
every corner of the WMU campus.

"I am delighted not only with the caliber of the proposals
submitted, but with the kind of energy and creativity the competition
has sparked campuswide," says Bailey. "We had 80 teams
submit ideas for consideration, and their ideas showed great
energy and creativity, as well as a commitment to the University's
goals and mission. Many of the proposals focus on our engagement
with the communities we serve. Others use technology in ways
that will serve our students and our state and nation."

The amounts awarded, the names
of the project directors and the names of the proposals selected
for funding are:

$289,448 to Kevin Abbott, a multimedia specialist in the Office
of Information Technology, for an effort aimed at using digital
media in the performing arts [read more];

$212,304 to Dr. James Schultz, director of WMU-Grand Rapids,
to develop a Center for Career Services and Human Resources Development
at WMU's Grand Rapids campus [read more];

$116,898 to Dr. Allen Webb, professor of English, to integrate
virtual reality environments into teaching and learning on campus
[read more]; and

$26,512 to Kathleen Wong, assistant professor of communication,
to develop an online curriculum module on diversity and engineering
[read more].

The announcement marked the completion of a competitive process
designed to provide cash awards to turn good ideas into reality.
Bailey established the President's Innovation Fund last fall,
using unrestricted gifts to establish a pool of $2 million for
a series of one-time awards for work done over the next two years.
Work on the funded proposals could begin as soon as next month.

Open to all members of the WMU faculty or staff, the competition
drew proposals from every corner of the campus. Those submitting
proposals range from top research scientists and department chairs
to office support personnel and campus technical staff. All of
those who submitted proposals were thanked at the reception.

The President's Innovation Fund provides one-time monetary
awards that could range from $25,000 to $1 million. The president
made the final selections after receiving the advice and recommendations
of a nine-member review panel led by Dr. Nicholas Andreadis,
dean of Extended University Programs. Five criteria were used
by the review panel to develop their recommendations. The innovative
idea had to advance the mission of WMU, have a significant impact
on student education or University outcomes, produce measurable
results, be feasible to implement and be led by individuals with
expertise and experience.

The review panel used a three-tier review process in assessing
each of the proposals before narrowing the group to a final recommended
list. Bailey says she relied on the review panel's recommendations
as she made her final funding decisions.

"The panel did a wonderful job of analyzing the proposals
to determine if they were truly innovative and would significantly
enhance the University's core mission," she notes. "I
looked at all of the proposals as well, and found myself not
only in agreement with panel's findings, but also left with a
deep appreciation for the care and integrity that group brought
to the process."

Digital Media in the Performing
ArtsProject Director Kevin Abbott and a team of collaborators
from the College of Fine Arts and the Office of Information Technology

Description: The team will work to establish WMU as a national
presence in the production, research and application of innovative
performing arts technology. Using the same cutting-edge technologies
used in films, computer games, IMAX theatre and theme parks,
the team will work with performing arts students and faculty
to apply technology to College of Fine Arts performances scheduled
over the next 18 months. Such tools as motion capture, stereoscopic
3D projection, computer-generated imagery, musical instrument
digital interface (MIDI) and telematics video will be added to
the WMU and Kalamazoo arts communities and then shared with the
national performing arts community. Three public performances
and shows are planned to showcase the technology, beginning late
fall 2006.

WMU-Kalamazoo Promise Partnership:
Promoting Engineering Careers to Female, Minority and Economically
Disadvantaged Middle School StudentsProject Director Dr. Ikhlas Abdel-Qader and team members
Drs. Sherif Yehia and Edmund Tsang from the College of Engineering
and Applied Sciences

Description: The goal of the project is to motivate and prepare
middle school students in the Kalamazoo Public Schools to take
advantage of the Kalamazoo Promise and pursue college studies
in the science, technology, engineering and mathematics fields.
The project team will use both summer and academic-year programs
to expand the horizons of economically disadvantaged, minority
and female students in the Kalamazoo schools; create enthusiasm
for engineering professions; create enthusiasm for taking math,
science and technology courses; and create motivation for learning
and growth and for thinking beyond current expectations. The
team will use information technology, robotics, field trips,
interaction with engineering students and personal development
activities to accomplish its goals.

Innovation-Establish a Center
for Nano-Enabled Instrumentation and NanofabricationProject Director Dr. Subra Muralidharan and team members
Drs. Nora Berrah, Sherine O. Obare, Brian Tripp, Dongil Lee and
Yirong Mo from the College of Arts and Sciences

Description: The team will establish a Center for Nano-enabled
Instrumentation and Nanofabrication in which the focus will be
the visualization and real-time manipulation of nanomaterials
to construct highly specific nanostructures that can be used
as sensors, accomplish targeted drug delivery or lead to the
next generation of computer chips and fuel cells. Building on
technology already developed in WMU's Nanatotechnology Research
and Computation Center, the researchers will simultaneously employ
multiple optical, electrical and magnetic force fields to trap
nanoscale objects and visualize them through modifications of
existing optical microscope techniques.

Bronco Biodiesel--Alternative
Fuel Leadership: Recycling Waste Oil into BiodieselProject Director Dr. Marc Perkovic and team members Drs.
Steven Bertman, Sarah Hill and Steven Koehler from the College
of Arts and Sciences

Description: The project is designed to address the lack of
biodiesel availability in Southwest Michigan and demonstrate
WMU leadership in the search for viable alternative fuel sources.
The team will focus on developing a systematic recycling effort
that will convert waste vegetable oil into high-quality fuel
called "Bronco Biodiesel." The brand and supply chain
management business will be owned by the WMU Research Foundation
and will coordinate all elements of community-based alternative
fuel sourcing--production, wholesale distribution and retail
sales in the regional market of Southwest Michigan. The effort
is designed to show the viability of a community-based biodiesel
production business as well as to develop a revenue-generating
analytical service for the nation's growing community of biodiesel
producers.

A Proposal to Develop The Center
of Career Services and Human Resources Development at the Grand
Rapids Campus of WMUProject Director Dr. James Schultz and team members Lynn
Kelly-Albertson, director of Career and Student Employment Services
and Dr. Eric Sauer, director, Center for Counseling and Psychological
Services in Grand Rapids

Description: The new center is designed to address existing
unmet community needs in metro Grand Rapids, while providing
WMU graduate students with enhanced pre-graduation clinical experience
as well as expanded professional opportunities after graduation.
Located in WMU's Graduate Center-Downtown, the center will: enhance
economic development by providing career counseling for area
residents; enhance graduate opportunities in counseling by offering
a career facilitator certification option; provide individual
and organizational practicum experiences for graduate students
in human resource development; provide incentives for existing
career service providers in the area to partner with WMU; and
integrate the expertise of Career and Student Employment Services
specialists from WMU's main campus into the work of the Grand
Rapids campus.

Integrate Virtual Reality Environments
into Teaching and LearningProject Director Dr. Allen Webb and a team of literature
professors and graduate students from the Department of English

Description: The project is designed to level the playing
field for literature instructors by putting the power of new
technologies to work in service of teaching great literature.
By creating virtual realities that hinge on the specific literary
works assigned in their classes, WMU students will be able explore
and interact in virtual literary worlds, role playing and interrelating
as characters, extending and altering character conduct and analyzing
the impact of setting, language and dialogue on behavior and
events. The virtual worlds will be created online using an award-winning
open source software package called EnCore 4>.

Online Curriculum Module on
Diversity and EngineeringProject Director Kathleen Wong and a team from the School
of Communication, the College of Engineering and Applied Sciences
and the Office of Information Technology

Description: The goal of the project is to develop an innovative,
self-paced supplemental diversity curriculum that could be used
for students in core engineering courses. The curriculum would
help meet overall diversity goals and objectives in the college,
demonstrate WMU's commitment to diversity in technical fields
to external audiences, serve as a model for other engineering
schools and position WMU's College of Engineering and Applied
Sciences as a leader in innovative diversity initiatives in the
science, technology, engineering and mathematics disciplines.